This invention relates to improved organic amine compositions and, more particularly, to organic amine compositions in which the formation of nitrosamine impurities is significantly reduced.
Organic amines have many diverse industrial applications having found wide use, both as a substantially 100 percent active composition and as aqueous solutions. Recently, N-nitrosamines, which are the reaction products of amines, and particularly secondary amines, with nitrosating agents have been found to be carcinogenic in tests on experimental animals and they are regarded as a potential hazard to humans. As a result, there has been a growing concern in recent years over their presence in products such as food, cosmetics, metal working compounds and the like.
Unfortunately, minute amounts of the undesirable nitrosamines have been found in various amines such as alkanolamines even though the nitrosating agent may not be apparent. It is desirable, therefore, to reduce, eliminate, or prevent the formation of nitrosamines in amine compositions and thereby eliminate this possible source of such contaminants in the many products in which the amines are used.
Heretofore, several approaches have been suggested for solving the nitrosamine contamination problem, particularly where known nitrosating agents such as inorganic nitrites are also present, for example, as food additives, corrosion inhibitors for aqueous solutions, etc. For example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,087,561 and 4,088,793 to Bharucha et al. there is disclosed the use of 1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-6-alkoxy quinoline compounds or nitroxide derivatives of 1,2-dihydro and 1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-6-alkoxy quinoline compounds for reducing or eliminating the formation of undesirable nitrosamines during cooking of processed meat products containing nitrites, and Gray and Dugan, Jr. in Journal of Food Science, Vol. 40 (1975), pages 981-984, disclose the results of an evaluation of potential nitrosamine inhibitors including antioxidant compounds such as hydroquinone in acidic aqueous media and in low moisture carboxymethylcellulose systems. While such approaches have shown promise in inhibiting the formation of nitrosamines, the amounts of the inhibitors required are generally greater than would be desired and there can be found no suggestion that would appear to be directly applicable to the problem involved with eliminating or preventing the formation of nitrosamines in organic amines such as alkanolamines.